Biological parameters and host preference of Tyrophagus putrescentiae (Schrank) on different Pleurotus ostreatus cultivars

Tyrophagus putrescentiae (Acari: Acaridae) is a destructive pest of edible fungi. Different species of edible fungi have variable effects on the growth, development and fecundity of T. putrescentiae, but it is unclear whether these effects exist in the same species. We used nine cultivars of the oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) to evaluate the development and reproduction parameters of T. putrescentiae at 26 ± 1°C and 80 ± 5% humidity. Different P. ostreatus cultivars had significant effects on the immature stages, female fertility, and reproductive lifespan. Total egg-to-adult development time ranged from 10.0 ± 1.2 d (on Po389 cultivar) to 12.5 ± 1.0 d (on Po62 cultivar). Mite mortality ranged from 54.3 ± 4.2% (on Po86 cultivar) to 100.0 ± 0.0% (on Po62 cultivar). The number of eggs laid per female ranged from 3.2 ± 0.4 (on Po45 cultivar) to 9.1 ± 1.1 (on Po86 cultivar). The average lifespan of females ranged from 3.0 ± 0.5 d (on Po45 cultivar) to 16.3 ± 1.7 d (on Po86 cultivar). Host preference of the mite was significantly different among the nine cultivars with a preference for cultivars Po65, Po80, Po389, and Po86. These results indicate that P. ostreatus cultivars significantly affect the biology of T. putrescentiae and the relationship between mite damage and mushroom yield.

“Hard” High-Investment Adult-Age Adventure Play in the Off Hours

Globally, adults engage in various forms of high-investment adventure play in their leisure. Sometimes, these are complementary to their careers, their self-identities, and their social circles. This type of adventure play requires investments in learning, KSA (knowledge, skills, and abilities) development, social network development, time, moneys, reputation, and other costs. It may involve some level of risk-taking. This work explores this niche space of “hard” adventure play as expressed on the Social Web as a type of peer-shared teaching and learning, with a focus on “luxury geocaching” as the activity.

How long do eriophyoid mites live?

The eriophyoid mites (Acari: Eriophyoidea) are extremely small, highly specialized and obligately phytophagous, and ~ 80% of the ~ 5,000 known species are monophagous. They include pests of more than 50 important food and industrial crops and ornamental plants. Conversely, other species have been investigated for their potential role in the biological control of weeds. In this literature review, the data on the development time, adult longevity and lifespan of eriophyoid species generated in 74 studies from 1930 to 2021 was compiled. The eriophyoids were from three families, Eriophyidae, Diptilomiopidae and Phytoptidae, 24 genera and 47 species that included 43 eriophyids, two phytoptids and two diptilomiopids. The most studied genus was Aceria (13 species), followed by Aculus (4) and Calacarus (3). The host plants were in a range of vegetative forms, including grasses, a climber, shrubs and trees, in different families that included Poaceae, Rosaceae and Rutaceae. Almost all the investigations were carried out in laboratory settings under numerous combinations of species, gender, diet/host plant, temperature, relative humidity and photoperiod. These variables all affected the development time, adult longevity and lifespan of eriophyoid mites, with temperature consistently a major influence and relative humidity consistently important. Male life stages were always shorter than female life stages. Phyllocoptruta oleivora (Ashmead) males had the shortest lifespan of 7.1 d at 32 °C on green orange fruit and Aculops lycopersici (Massee) females had the longest lifespan of 46.4 d at 11 °C on young tomato leaves. Biological studies on the duration of their life stages are required to develop models that predict the dynamics of eriophyoid populations in the field to support IPM programs and organic farming. Moreover, these studies are becoming increasingly valuable as globalization and climate change facilitate the spread of invasive eriophyoid mite species.

The lifespans of the potential biological control agents in the family Blattisociidae (Acari: Mesostigmata)

This review summarized the duration of immature stages (egg to adult) and adult lifespans of the mites in the family Blattisociidae based on literature published from 1965 to 2021. We found 57 articles with information on the ecology and biology of the blattisociids. The lifespan and duration of immature stages were only reported in 16 out of 400 species. Most of the experiments were conducted in the laboratory, which may not accurately reflect their lifespans in nature. Temperatures, diets, and pesticides are the main factors that affect the lifespan of blattisociids. Low temperature could significantly prolong the lifespan and duration of immature stages of blattisociids. Different prey species or stages also affect the development time and lifespan of blattisociids significantly.

The characteristics of lifespan in Cheyletidae and its response to environmental factors

This paper provides a survey of a collection of references on life history studies of eight species in the family Cheyletidae. It reviews some factors (including sex difference, temperature, humidity and prey) that affect the development time and lifespan in Cheyletidae. This paper also analyzes the effects these biotic and abiotic factors on the growth and development of cheyletid mites.

Kinematic model of the suspension of an electric car

The purpose of the work considered in this article is to develop approaches and methods for designing an electric vehicle from the concept phase to production based on the use of digital simulation. In this study, calculations were performed using the calculation of the kinematic model of the electric car suspension and CAE. Based on the results of the calculations and their compliance with the matrix of targets and resource constraints, the geometry of the suspension parts was changed during the study. For each of the iterations of the geometry, the types and materials were selected for the subsequent production of electric car suspension parts. The application of the above-mentioned approach from the earliest stages of work allowed us not only to achieve the required criteria for the mechanical characteristics of the structure, but also to comply with the conditions for reducing the development time, the cost of production and improving its quality.

Wing plastic response to temperature variation in two distantly related neotropical Drosophila species (Diptera, Drosophilidae)

Phenotypic plasticity has been described for morphological and life-history traits in many organisms. In Drosophila, temperature drives phenotypic change in several traits, but few neotropical species have been studied and whether the phenotypic variation associated with plasticity is adaptive remains unclear. Here, we studied the phenotypic response to temperature variation in the distant related neotropical species Drosophila mercatorum (Patterson and Wheeler, 1942) and Drosophila willistoni (Sturtevant, 1916). We evaluate if wing shape variation follows that observed in the neotropical species Drosophila cardini (Sturtevant, 1916): round wings at lower temperatures and narrower wings at higher temperatures. The variation in egg-adult development time and wing size, shape, and allometry was described using reaction norms and geometric morphometrics. In both species, development time and wing size decreased with increasing temperature and wing allometry showed that size explained ≈10% of the shape variation. Wing shape, however, exhibited contrasting responses. At higher temperatures, D. mercatorum developed slightly slender wings, following the pattern previously found for D. cardini, while D. willistoni developed plumper and shorter wings, supporting previous studies on Drosophila melanogaster (Meigen, 1830). We conclude that all traits studied here were influenced by temperature, and that wing shape seems also to be influenced by phylogeny.

Urban Imbalance and Non-inclusive Development in Mexico: The Case of its Top 15 Major Urban Municipalities

Under the basic premise that an economy and its territory as a socioeconomic entity, are inscribed into a nation’s space. Accordingly, the concomitant sustainable handling of its natural resources and people ́s well-being depends on myriad factors among which stands out firstly, the country's own socioeconomic dynamics and secondly, but not least important, the political capacity of the State ́s intervention into the economy, as the foremost legal entity capable to advance the nation ́s economic strategy, to simultaneously foment growth and social well-being into the nation. Upon this premise, the article aims at analyzing the socioeconomic implications and multiple externalities derived from the neoliberal economic strategy implemented by Mexico in the last decades, with particular reference to the country ́s current urban imbalances around the country ́s top 15 municipalities including Mexico City to demonstrate its failure and the compelling need to reorient it towards a more balanced, social-inclusive and sustainable urban development. Time ́s horizon for this analysis ranges from 1980-2018.